First, the good news.  No need to fret any longer Minnesota Twins fans, your best player, Joe Mauer, will be behind the dish for the long-term.  There had been lots of speculation in regards to whether Mauer would re-sign with the team or join free agency after the 2010 season.  If Mauer had chosen the latter route, he would have been highly sought after by many teams.

The negotiations to get an extension done wasn't talked about as publicly as some other potential free agent's looming status, as both parties wanted the other.  Mauer is obviously comfortable playing in his home state for the only professional organization he's known, and the Twins obviously wanted to keep him.  The eight-year extension contains a no-trade clause, so unless something goes completely awry with both the club and Mauer, don't expect him to wear anything but a Twins jersey.  In fact, don't be surprised if Mauer only plays for the Twin Cities during his career.

And, now, the bad news.  All-Star closer Joe Nathan will miss the season to undergo Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow.  Nathan has been one of the best closers in all of baseball and if someone named Mariano Rivera wasn't around, Nathan would probably be the best closer in the American League.  However, the ninth inning will need to belong to someone else in 2010.  The candidates include Jon Rauch, Matt Guerrier, Jesse Crain, Jose Mijares, and Pat Neshek.  Of the group, Rauch has the most closing experience with 26 career saves over eight seasons, including 18 saves in 2008 with the Washington Nationals (17) and Arizona Diamondbacks (1).  However, in a case like this, I'm sure manager Ron Gardenhire will go with the best available candidate.

Mauer is here to stay, Nathan will not be, at least for 2010, and it looks like the Twins will need some luck in someone taking up Nathan's spot.  The A.L. Central should be very competitive between the Twins, Chicago White Sox, and Detroit Tigers and losing their closer could prove costly for Minnesota, something that the Mauer signing can overshadow only so much, especially when you consider the question of how much signing their catcher to a lucrative contract will affect the Twins' ability to sign other players to help contend in the future.